weighing in.(Editorial)

Byline: Anna Wintour

April is the month in which we annually celebrate how fashion can be worn and loved by women with beautiful and diverse bodies. This year, the issue is of particular importance and timeliness because there has been so much attention in political circles and the popular press given to the size of models on the spring runways. In "Walking a Thin Line," Rebecca Johnson gives a comprehensive, behind-the-scenes look at the issue of body image in the fashion industry from the point of view of models and their agents, designers, and the health professionals who treat young women afflicted with eating disorders. That fashion alone should be blamed for this health issue surprises me-many other fields such as movies, ballet, and rock music could equally be said to promote a thin ideal. The Council of Fashion Designers of America recently issued a series of guidelines aimed at minimizing professional factors that could contribute to the development of eating disorders in models (minimum age requirements, a limit on working hours, a ban on alcohol and tobacco at runway shows) and alerting designers and agents to "red flags" that could indicate unhealthy behavior. A committee of health professionals has been established to which young women who are suspected of suffering from anorexia or bulimia will be referred and, we hope, successfully treated. I applaud these initiatives because they seek to promote awareness and responsibility in the fashion industry and to help the young women in distress. We know that eating disorders are complex psychological and physiological conditions: The slimmest girl on a runway may have a naturally high metabolism and healthy eating habits, while a slightly heavier young woman who has a higher body mass index might be in the throes of a terrible disease. At a pre-Fashion Week symposium to explain these guidelines, Natalia Vodianova spoke about her experiences of gaining and losing weight as a model, and the consequences she encountered; her boldness and honesty were exemplary in a business that doesn't always disclose its secrets. (Paulina Porizkova, in Eve MacSweeney's "Long Tall Stories," also provides real insight into the lives of top models two ...